How Do We Judge Whether Lesson Study is Working

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How Do We Judge Whether Lesson Study is Working?

• How Do We Prove It To Others?

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• This material is based upon work supported by the
  National Science Foundation under Grant No.
  0207259. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions
  or recommendations expressed in this material are
  those of the author(s) and do not necessarily
  reflect the views of the National Science
  Foundation.

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• Traveler, there is no road. The road is created
  as we walk it together.
  
• Antonio Machado

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Goals

• Advance our understanding of lesson study and its
  evaluation
  
• Examine potential measures of lesson study
  progress
  
• Identify measures for our own work
• Formulate a networking plan (if desired)

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sources
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Lesson Study
Planning Phase
Collaborative planning Discuss goals for st
udents content Study available units lesson
s
Build from an existing lesson
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Lesson Study
Research Lesson
Planning Phase
1 teacher teaches others observe/ collect
data Designed to bring to life a particular
goal/ vision of education Record lesson - video
, audio, student work, observation notes
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Lesson Study
Post-Lesson Activities
Research Lesson
Planning Phase
Formally debrief lesson Share data Draw im
plications for lesson and teaching-learning more
broadly
Revise and re-teach if desired
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Lesson Study
1. STUDY Consider long term goals for student lea
rning and development Study curriculum and standa
rds
2. PLAN Select or revise research lesson Do task
Anticipate student responses Plan data collecti
on and lesson

4. REFLECT Share data What was learned about stu
dents learning, lesson design, this content?
What are implications for this lesson and
instruction more broadly?
3. DO RESEARCH LESSON Conduct research lesson Co
llect data

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How does lesson study improve instruction?
Visible Features of Lesson Study Consider Goals
Study Curriculum and Standards Plan and
Conduct Research Lesson Collect Data Debrief
Lesson Use Debrief to Inform Instruction
?
Instructional Improvement
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A Common Early Conception of Lesson Study
Visible Features of Lesson Study Plan Teac
h
Observe Discuss Etc.
Key Pathway Lesson Plans Improve
Instructional Improvement
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How Does Lesson Study Improve Instruction?
Cause Changes In Teachers Knowledge of subject
matter and its teaching -General knowledge of i
nstruction -Ability to observe students -Con
nection of daily instruction to long-term goals
-Motivation/willingness to improve -Capacity
to learn together, collegial networks
Curriculum -Better lessons -Choice of better c
urricula System -Changes in policy -Changes in
learning structures
Visible Features of Lesson Study Consider Goals
Study Curriculum and Standards Plan and
Conduct Research Lesson Collect Data Debrief
Lesson Use Debrief to Inform Instruction Wh
at Else?
Result in Changes in Teaching-Learning
Specific Examples Teaching -Offer high-level ta
sk Learning -Student journals
reveal thinking re proportional reasoning
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Can patterns help us find an easy way to answer
the question How many seats fit around a row of
triangle tables?
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What Happens Over Lesson Study Cycles?
Lesson Study
Builds - Knowledge - Motivation to
Improve Collective Work

Lesson Study
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Lesson Study
1. STUDY Consider long term goals for student lea
rning and development Study curriculum and standa
rds
2. PLAN Select or revise research lesson Do task
Anticipate student responses Plan data collecti
on and lesson

4. REFLECT Share data What was learned about stu
dents learning, lesson design, this content?
What are implications for this lesson and
instruction more broadly?
3. DO RESEARCH LESSON Conduct research lesson Co
llect data

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Measures Related to Instruction

• Specific to topic
• Yoshida counting by ones vs. chunking
• R. Perry ideas about proportional reasoning
• General to subject area
• MK Stein Mathematical task level
• General to teaching-learning
• Student discourse

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Low-Stakes, High-Yield Assessment

• Measures that reveal student thinking in ways
  that help you build learning

Use of assessments in an ongoing and repeated
manner to monitor the qualities of teaching and
learning, where the goal is solely formative and
no high stakes are connected to the effort. My
claim is that the two go together the higher the
stakes attached to the assessment, the less
likely it is to yield useful diagnostic or
formative information to the guide the practice.
Most of the energy of educational assessment
specialists has gone into "high stakes, low
yield" assessments, given at the end of the year
or program, designed for a single administration,
and with results far too late to guide program
modification or student work.
Lee Shulman, Carnegie Endowment for the
Advancement of Teaching
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(NCTM, 2002)
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Ideas From Planning

• Unit rate (value of a ratio) relates equivalent
  fractions
  
• Relates to measurement
• Uses division
• Units (e.g., of 1) can be grouped to form larger
  units (e.g., of 5)
  
• Teachers dont typically think in units, but in
  simplest form

(Lo, Watanabe, Cai, 2004)
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Ideas From Planning

• These methods differ from the standard
  cross-multiply and divide algorithm

(McDougall Littell, 2004)
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video
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Ideas from Post-Lesson Activities

• Double number line can summarize methods

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Evaluation of Proportional Reasoning

• How many of the research-identified important
  ideas about proportional reasoning came up in
  teachers planning?
  
• How many came up during the lesson?

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Mathematical Task Level

• Non-Mathematical
• Memorization
• Procedures Without Connections
• Procedures With Connections
• Doing Mathematics
• Stein, M.K., Smith, M.S., Henningsen, M.,
  Silver, E.A. (2000). Implementing
  standards-based mathematics instruction A
  casebook for professional development. New York
  Teachers College Press.
• Smith, M.S., Stein, M.K. (1998). Selecting and
  creating mathematical tasks From research to
  practice. Mathematics Teaching in the Middle
  School, 3(5), 344-3

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Levels of Math-Talk Community

• Shift Over 0-3 Classroom community grows to
  support
  
• -student reasoning contribution
• -focus on mathematical thinking, not only
  answers
  
• Shifts in 4 dimensions
• -Questioning
• -Explaining Mathematical Thinking
• -Source of Mathematical Ideas
• -Responsibility for Learning
• Hufferd-Ackles, Fuson, Sherin JRME Mar 2004 35
  2, 81-116

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Motivation to Continue to Improve Instruction

• Do teachers find their work useful?
• Are they motivated to continue it? Why or why
  not?
  
• Do teachers feel commitment and connection to
  group members? Do they feel responsibility to
  help others improve?
  

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Changes in Norms, Identity, Learning Structures

• Changes in
• Beliefs about children teaching
• Identity see self as researcher, as learner
  e.g., kindergarten teachers should know
  algebra)
  
• Schedules structures (e.g.,meetings)

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Example Capacity to Learn

• Ex from www.stanford.edu/group/CRC
• The teachers in this school
• Feel responsible to help each other do their
  best
  
• Share ideas and teaching practices

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Example Beliefs about Students

• Ex from www.stanford.edu/group/CRC
• By trying different teaching methods I can
  significantly affect my students achievement
  level
  
• My expectations for my students learning have
  been increasing

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Lesson Study
Planning Phase
Is the group building Knowledge? -Drawing on e
xcellent resources -Solving, discussing mathemati
cal tasks, predicting student thinking
-Connecting prior new ideas, exploring
conflicts Motivation to Keep Improving Practice?
-Ownership of work, connection to own questions
student needs -Commitment, connection to colle
agues
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Lesson Study
Research Lesson Debrief
Planning Phase
Is group building Knowledge? Observational Ski
lls Research Stance Grasp of Student Thinkin
g Motivation to Keep Improving Practice? Per
ceived Usefulness of Learning from Colleagues,
Students, Outside Resources Sense of Commitment,
Connection
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Lesson Study
Post-Lesson Activities
Research Lesson
Planning Phase
Is the group building Knowledge? -Continued Ap
plication to Practice -Continued Information-Seek
ing - New Questions Motivation to Keep Improvi
ng Practice? - Perceived Usefulness of What Was L
earned - Valuing/Feeling Valued by Colleagues

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Protocol for Sharing Plans

• Listen SILENTLY to evaluation presentation (5
  minutes)
  
• Write SILENTLY (5 minutes)
• Most important things that will be learned from
  this evaluation
  
• What might be added/changed